California Gov. Gavin Newsom made a pretty major announcement yesterday, taking his latest stance to fight back against Republicans’ mid-decade redistricting plans in Texas and beyond.
This move comes as Republicans in Texas — with President Donald Trump’s backing — are pursuing a new congressional map that could give them as many as five more House seats. And Newsom’s response? He’s leaning into some signature California swag: “I know they say ‘Don’t mess with Texas.’ Well, don’t mess with the great Golden State.”
He’s calling it the “Election Rigging Response Act,” a proposal that would let California Democrats bypass the state’s independent redistricting commission and redraw maps more favorable to their own party. Newsom says it’s a direct response to Republican moves.
“I’m grateful to all of the remarkable leaders that have stepped up this unifying effort, and we’ll be asking for the people on the November 4th special election, coinciding with a lot of local municipal elections, to provide a temporary pathway for congressional maps. We will affirm our commitment to the state independent redistricting after the 2030 census, but we’re asking the voters for their consent to do midterm redistricting.”
Here’s my take: I am not a fan of gerrymandering from either side. It’s anti-democratic, plain and simple. If both red states and blue states start stealing congressional seats through partisan map-making, we all lose.
In an ideal world, Texas would wait until the next census and adopt independent redistricting committees — and California would resist the temptation to “fight fire with fire.” Because in this case, the “fire” is actually a direct hit to one of democracy’s core values: voting equality. And if you burn that down, you’re doing the work of democracy’s enemies for them.
When both political parties start disenfranchising voters to push their policies without actually earning our votes, the only winners are the people rich enough to buy politicians’ loyalty.
But while I think Newsom’s redistricting plan is wrong, I have to admit — the man is on a roll. He’s trolling Trump like it’s his new hobby, even calling him “DONALD ‘TACO’ TRUMP” in all caps on X. The nickname caught fire a few months ago, with Jeanine Pirro even chuckling on air when a reporter brought it up to the former president. Take a look — I guess I’m not the only one who thinks it’s funny!
At the end of the day, my hope is simple: Republicans stick with the current Texas maps, Democrats back off the retaliation, and Gov. Newsom keeps going just enough to keep us all entertained — because clearly, he’s found his spotlight.
Lindsey Granger is a News Nation contributor and co-host of The Hill’s commentary show “Rising.” This column is an edited transcription of her on-air commentary.
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